Dumping freight-car.



H. A. STURNI.

DUMPING FREIGHT CAR.

7 RPPLICATION IILED OCT. 27,1915 1,207,445.

Patented Dec. 5,1916.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

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H..A. STURNI. v DUMPING FREIGHT CAR. APPLICATION FILED-fem. 27. 1915.

Patented Dec. 5,1916,

4 SHEETSSHEET 4- z m m 9- llllllllfllll/r A TTOR/VEYS HARRY A. STURNI, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

PUMPING FREIGHT-GAB.

Specificationcf Letters Patent;

Application filed October 27, 1915. Serial no. 58.141.

To (/77 whom it may concern Be. it. known that 1'. linear A. S'ronxl, a citizen of the l niteil States and a resident of the ell) it New York. lioi' lltrh of the llronx'. in the email of Bronx and Nate of .\'ew York, hare inrenleil a new and Improved Dumpinglfi-eight-tar. of which the jollmi'ing is a full. clear. and exact tleseriptloll. I

lhis inrention relates to railway rolling stock and has partieulm: referenee to dump lug freight ears.

Among the oli ieets of the invention is to improre thal elass ol' freight ears provided with movabl bottoms for discharging the contents when, desired.

Mei'e definitely stated. the invention contemplates the provision of a ear bottom .irornfn 1 ll r lngriznntal in elm-ted position but i; i t l'lt fo 'ne. dropped or lowered along {side-"for tlifitlitll'fiillfl the contents of the. car laterallrat sueh side..

f n-thee jih ject of the invention-isto prorhle sn ip'orting or controlling means for the sides f tlle. lmttom of sneh;.a nature that when either side. is lowered the. opposite side-- support eonstitutes a fnlernn'i or hinge portion for that side. which remains elevated and approximatel} in its normal position.

A still further object, is to provide a dumping freight car having ihinged side ilourskme on eaeh side of the car. the door on the side where the material is discharged hein'g :lCltlDtOll to swing freelj outwardly nmler the toree of the'movii-in'mateifial while the. door on tho-opposite. side is caused positirelr by movement of the car hottom-t more i mrartlly Sllfillth'lfl facilitate the de l-ivelwof the material.

- Vlith the foregoing: and other objects in View. the. invention consists int-he arrangement and combination of parts hereinafter described and claimed. and while the invention is not restricted to the exact details of construction disclosed herein, still for the pinposeof. v.illnstratinn a practical emb0d i ment thereof reference is had'jtb the aoo0m-' panying drawingsin which like reference. characters designate the-same parts in the several vieirsrand in: yl1ich"- Figure -1 1s a sideelevatlon 1n diagram of a, freight. car made-in. 'accordange with Patented Dec. 5.1916 f this invention; Fig.2 is an end View ofth H samei Fig. 3 is a vertical transverse section substantially on the 1inc'33 of Fig. L b nt on alarger scale; Fig. 4 is a view similai to Fig. 3 but wheat-mgr the. parts in clnmpmg.

position: Fig. 5-is a -vertical longitiidina'l sectional rletaihbn the line 55 of Fig; 3;.- Fig. 6 is a rerticlil trztnsverse sectional view on the'line 6. 6 of Figrfi indica ting the hottom. controlling devict'd in the position assumed hr them at the time the bottom is restored to normal position bnt not et' loelceil: Fig. 7 is a w en sectional detail at right angles to Fig. Sand on, the line 7-T thereof; Fig. 8 is a horizontal sectional.

detail on the line 8-8 of Fig. 6; an'dzFig'."

fl is a vertical sectional detail of one of the.

buffers. 4 t

The. general construction of the car body 10 and the trucks 11 may he of a standard nature. and cxceptas hereinafter specified "I do not wish to lie-limited with respect to the car and thus discharged when the car is being unloaded.

The movable floor 13' maybe regarded a. single plate for the pnrpose of this con-- sirleration, .-the same; being mounted in anysuitable manner upon transverse girders 14:

and provided along lateral "edges with*' I angle plates 15. As shown in Figs. and-- 4, theplate's 15 are each; arranged with a vertical flange on theohtside and ailiorizoln= tal flange at the bottom,'and at any suitable points along each of the plates a reiprovided a plurality oil-holes or opemngs "16 between the vertical flange and -the nd ja cent edge of the floor plate 1.3.

As above premised. at each'j side ofxthecar body. 10 is'a door 17 'substantinlly' co '"-"iextensive longitndi'nally'of .a't-he car with themovabl hoof-13 and hinged.- at its uppenf edge at'l8 so as to swinghntwardly .freel-y" when the car is being dumped.- Each door IT in x-nan closed position is incline \vurdly slightly at; its bottom from the vertical being so held by means of a series of upright. posts 19 along the outer side of the door. The lower ends of the posts 1 extend below the lower edge of the door and have their outer corners rounded off as indieatcd at. '20. These. lower ends of the door posts are received in and through the openings 16 above described. whereby the doors are locked shut when the bottom is closed. Each door hangs in substantially vertical posit-ion when released from the bottom and the material has been discharged from the car. as shown at the left hand side of Fig. 4. The rounding of the corners at 20 insures, however. that the vertical flange of the adjacent plate 15 will engage the posts liand cause the door to be moved inwardly slightly at, its bottom into normal closed position when the floor is elevated toits non inal position.

The movable floor is supported on a series of trusses '21 each comprising a pair of divergentlegs extending downwardly and outwardly from the longitudinal central portion of the structure, the. point or apex portion of each truss freely spanning the main longitudinal girder :22 of the rigid bottom frame. This l'trame also includes the side channels 23and 24, together with such transverse members '25 as may be required. Both sides of the bottom are independently supported by devices mounted upon the stationary rigid frame just referred to, and either side of the bottom may be manipulated independently of the other.

I will now describe specifically the con trolling mechanism for either side of the car bottom. and such description will be understood as being applicable to the other side. The power shaft '26 is journaled longitudinally of the frame closely adjacent the inner side of the channel beam and projects from both ends of the car. A series of pinions '27 are fixed to the shaft 26. and these )ll'llOliS 27 mesh with a corresponding num- Jer of arc-shapcd racksQS carried by rigid supports 29 constituting a part of the frame. v

The. racks 28 are located on the inner side of the pinions or between the pinious and the}longitudinal center of the car. The shaft 26 may be rotated through any source of "power. the same being: typified by a hand lever 30 connected to a ratchet wheel-lll'at eitherend of. the shaft. A pawl 3:2 cooperateswith tlie ratchet wheel and serves to hold the shaft from such rotation as would permitthe racks to move downwardly. These pawls and ratchets are useful par ticularlyduring the hoisting: of the movable car floor- 123.

A rnclt shaft 3- cured along the rock shaft 33 preferably one 'on one side theplate 15 thereof is adapted is located below and closely adjacent and parallel to the power; shaft :26 and likewise extends the fulllength of the car, At either end of the rock shaft is sccured'a socket member 34 whereby thesaid shaft may be rotated as by means of the same lever 30. A series of lugs of substantially semi-cylindrical form are sefor each pinion 2?. The rock shaft 33 is lo cated inwardly slightly from the vertical plane of the power shaft 26 and is adapted to be rotated through substantially a half rotation so as to swing the lugs either inwardly or outwardly. When the lugs are swung so as to be on the inner side of the rock shaft. they are adapted to fit into correspondingly shaped bearing sockets 36 secured to the lower ends of the rack supports 29 and just below the ends of theracks. Zach of these bearing sockets is so disposed as to have its concave side or active surface directed outwardly. and such active face embraces a sulhcient portion of the lug 35 as to constitute with the lag and rock shafta primary support for that side of the carbottom. In other words, while the pinions 27 are designed primarilv for hoisting the bottom, the carrying 10M. is designed to be supported normally upon the lugs. Antifriction rollers 36' may be employed to relieve the friction at any of the benring poiuts of the structure, if desired. At this. stage it will be notedthat the racks 28 on either side of the car are curved upon arcs whose centers coincide with the axis of the rock shaft '33 upon the opposite side of the car. Itfol- =site shaft 33 as a center. During this movementthe pinions 2T constitute positive means to prevent the lateral displacement of the bearing sockets 36 from the lugs upon the opposite side and around which the bottom moves as a whole.

"When the bottom 13 swings downwardly to coiiperate with a suitable number 'iuffers. shown in detail in Fig. 9, and each including a plunger 37 reciprocating vertically in a socket member 38 and including a cushioning device of any suitable nature in dicated by a spring 39. The socket members are rigidly secured to the channel beams 23 and '24, whereby the impact due to the sudden droppage of the bottom will be relieved from the car structure.

From what has been stated above, when one side of the bottom is dropped. the adjacent door will be released therefrom and be free to swing outwardly under the force of gravity and, the pressure OfllllG material beingiduniped. At the same'time the door on the tp 'iositeside of the car will be forced inwardly slightly due to-tlie interlocking engagement between the lower ends of the posts 19 thereof and the angle plate 15,'it being noted that the line of engagement of the then closed door and the car bottom is located at adistai' ee materially above the then supporting rock shaft and lugs. In other words, the action of the bottom and supporting means is similar to that of a bell crank, the weight of the material upon the bottom and gliding downwardly thereon serving to cause the short arm of the bell crank to move the then closed door inwardly, as shown at the right hand side of Fig. 4, and thereby the discharge of the material from the car is facilitated.

To restore the bottom to normal position, power is applied to the power shaft on the open side of the car, the pawls and ratehets coiiperating to prevent reverse rotation of such shaft until the bottom is fully lifted and in position to be locked and positively supported by the lugs after they are swung around into locking position as shown l in Fig. 3. The rock shaft 33 is well mount- 7 ed and of sufiicient weight to bear the strains imposed upon it through the lugs, but because of the antifriction rollers 36 the t operator has no difficulty whatever in swinging the lugs out of locking and supporting position to permit the car bottom to swing downwardly, as above described, on either side.

I claim 1. In a dumping freight car, a rigid bottom, a series of rigid members secured at their upper ends to the rigid bottom and extending downwardly therefrom adjacent the opposite sides of said bottom, rotary means cooperating with said rigid members to elevate the bottom to closing position, and other rotary means adjacent the first mentioned rotary means cooperating with said rigid members to hold the bottom in closed tom, said rotary means and racks being duplicated on opposite sides of the car to pro vide for the downward tilting movement of the bottom for dumping on either side of the car. a bearing socket connected to the lower end of each rack and curved reversely to the rack, the center -of curvature of the socket for the body above the frame, ai-c shapcd rigid supports connected to the opposite sides of the bottom and extending down \vardly therefrom with their convexities opposite each other, bracing means connected to the lower ends of said supports to main.-

tain them in fixed position with respect to the bottom, rota ry controlling means jOlll naled in the frame and cooperating with said rigid supports to control the position of the bottom, said rotary controlling'ineans providing on either side of the car a sub stantially fixed supportfor that side-of the bottom and providing for the rigid support on the opposite side of the car to move downwardly in an arc of a circle concentric with the stationary controlling means upon the releasing of the controlling means on the opening side of the car.

4. In a dumping freight car, the combination with a rigid frame and a car body sup ported above the same, of a bottom movably arranged between. the body and the frame, a

series of racks connected at their upper ends of the bottom and extending downwardly therefrom on opposite sides of theycar, brac-- ing and supporting means cooperating with said racks to hold them in rigid position with respect to the bottom, a series of power pinions meshing with the respective racks for elevating the bottom to closed position, a series of lugs jouriialed in the frame ad acent the pinions, said supporting means being provided with arc-shaped bearings adapted to receive the lugs for the main to rotate all of the lugs on either side of the car simultaneously to permit that side of the bottom to swing downwardly arouiyl the otherseries of lugs as an axis.

5. In a dumping freight car, the combination with a body having an open bottom and a movable door on each side of the body, each door being hinged along its upper edge and adapted to swing inwardly and outwardly with respect to the body at its lower edge, of a bottom movable upwardly into interlocking engagement with the lower edges of both doors in closed DOSltlOIl and means controlling the position of the bottom and providing for the bottom toswing open downwardly at either side, permitting the body door on that side to swing outwardly and causing the body door on the closed side to swing inwardly.

6. In a dumping freight car, the combination with a car, body having a movable side supporting means for the bottom, and means bottom closure for said body opening, means to control the movement and position of the bottom closure causing one. side thereof to mterloek with said movable side member and providing for the downward opening movement of the bottom 'opposite said side discharge of material from the carbodv.

\Vifnesses i 1 Geo. L. BLELER', PHILIP D. RoLLHAUs.

HARRY A. sTURin member and an opening in its botoin,,0f a. member and theifeby causing saiq nimizibl member to swing inwardly to facilitate tl i e 

